June 15, 2009
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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow. What can I say, but wow. For the last 15 years, I have been following the Stanley Cup playoffs with an eagle eye. I have my favorite teams, but I enjoy watching all of them. What's not to like? The culmination of decades of hard work and dedication take the form of breakneck speed, breathtaking grace, and brute physical force. The globe's hockey elite migrate to North America for a shot at hockey's ultimate prize after a lifetime of sacrifice in the form of early morning practices, conditioning and training, and a long trail of worn out hockey equipment. In my relatively short time of observation, I have had my share of memorable moments - Ray Bourque finally gets a cup after 20+ hall-of-fame years, Patrick Roy's triple overtime cup-clinching shutout, Anaheim takes it in 2007 after I predicted as such in January without having seen them play. But on Friday night, the bar was raised significantly.
The Pittsburgh Penguins became one of my favorite teams years ago albeit for idiotic reasons - cool uniforms, great mascot, and the two main characters from one of my favorite novels (Christine by Stephen King - I have an autgraphed copy) were both big fans. I was also always impressed by Jaromir Jagr. Now, the acquisition of my own place nearly a decade ago enabled the purchase of the Center Ice package on Dish Network and greatly increased my ability to follow the sport. Since that time I estimate that I have seen roughly 80% of the games Pittsburgh has played. I was watching when Mario returned from retirement to register a goal and an assist in his first game back. I was watching when they drafted Sidney Crosby as he was proclaimed The Next One. I was watching when they finished with the second worst record in the league just four years ago. I watched Crosby break record after record for Youngest NHL player to..... I watched as the organization almost went under financially and was within a hair's breadth of moving to Kansas City. I watched the 2008 Heritage Classic outdoor game when Sidney Crosby scored the game-winning goal in a shootout amid falling snow. I watched them rise, fall, and rise again as deals were made, plans were changed, and the team was winnowed into the efficient machinery it is today. And I watched it all happen inside Mellon Arena, the league's oldest(1961) and lowest capacity arena. On Friday night, they were one win from the cup for the first time in 17 years. The dedication of my self and all other penguin fans was rewarded in dramatic fashion as Sid & Co. did what many deemed impossible - beating the Detroit Red Wings at The Joe with the Stanley Cup on the line. This was one of the most intense games I have ever seen. With the score kept low and the ice flooded with offensive threats, at no point could either team afford to relax. To top it all off, the enduring images of the game will be two ulcer-inducing saves made by Fleury as the buzzer sounded. The wings never let up, but neither did he. Redemption. Hollywood couldn't write a story like this. To be continued.On a side note, anyone reading this who doesn't know me might have reason to conclude that the Pittsburgh Penguins are my favorite NHL team, but they would be very wrong. That designation belongs, of course, to the Chicago Blackhawks. And don't think that their success this season was unnoticed. My eyes are on them as always, and I fully expect to be writing an entry celebrating their cup in a few years. The Penguins have a special place in my heart, but make no mistake - my dedication to the 'hawks is infinitely greater. Should Pittsburgh, or any other team, become the final obstacle to a cup for Chicago, I would eagerly and joyfully root for their thorough destruction. Until then, I'll have alot of basking to do until October.
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